Thanks to everyone for the valuable feedback. Capt Russ, sorry to hear about your bad experiences w/Cingular.

Ok, after performing cell reception signal strength tests, both INSIDE my house and the surrounding neighborhood, with different friend's phones, and on differing cell provider carriers: Cingular, Sprint, T-Mobile, and Verizon, Cingular's cell reception looks to be the strongest, at least in my house, with Cingular, so I went ahead and signed on with them. I got a Nokia 3010 phone with it, but have the option of swapping it for another fancier model or even a different brand with no penalty if done within 30 days. As a longtime Nokia phone enthusiast primarily because I'm most familar with its OS navigation, I'm considering switching (upgrading) to a Nokia 6620, or possibly going to a thin flip phone like the Motorola V3 Razr now. There is also a new Nokia model 6682 due out any day. Do any of you have a decided preference for: 'flip' or 'candybar stick' style phones'? Curious to hear what phones others of you are using and which brand/model are your favorite(s). Feed back appreciated as usual. - Scott

[This message has been edited by Scottyee (edited 09-01-2005).]